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AreWeAloneintheUniverse?WinstonChurchill'sLost
ExtraterrestrialEssaySaysNo
ThefamedBritishstatesmanapproachedthequestionofalienlifewitha
scientist'smind
BritishstatesmanandauthorWinstonChurchillreadscorrespondenceathisdeskin1933.(MaryEvansPicture
Library/Alamy)
ByBrianHandwerk
smithsonian.com
February16,201710:47AM
WinstonChurchill,Englishprimeministerandoneofhistorysmostinfluentialstatesmen,wasundoubtedlyamanwithweighty
questionsonhismind.HowbesttosavetheBritishEmpire?hemusthavemused.Whatwillthepostwarworldlooklike?he
surelywondered.Butthelegendaryleaderalsofocusedhisprodigiousmindonlesspragmaticquestions.Forinstance:Isthere
lifeonotherplanets?
Infact,in1939,Churchillpennedalengthyessayonthisverytopic,whichwasneverpublished.Besidesdisplayingastrong
graspofcontemporaryastrophysicsandascientificmind,hecametoabreathtakingconclusion:Weareprobablynotaloneinthe
universe.ThelonglostpieceofChurchillianahasjustfloateduptothesurfaceagain,thankstoanarticlewritten
byastrophysicistMarioLiviointhisweek'seditionofthejournalNatureanalyzingChurchill'swork.
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2/17/2017 Are We Alone in the Universe? Winston Churchill's Lost Extraterrestrial Essay Says No | Science | Smithsonian
Withhundredsofthousandsofnebulae,eachcontainingthousandsofmillionsofsuns,theoddsareenormousthattheremustbe
immensenumberswhichpossessplanetswhosecircumstanceswouldnotrenderlifeimpossible,Churchillconcludedinhis
essay.HewrotethesewordsontheeveofWorldWarIImorethanhalfacenturybeforeexoplanetswerediscovered.
Untillastyear,Churchill'sthoughtsontheproblemofalienlifehadbeenallbutlosttohistory.Thereason:His11
pagetypeddraftwasneverpublished.Sometimeinthelate1950sChurchillrevisedtheessaywhilevisitingtheseasidevillaof
publisherEmeryReves,butthetextstilldidn'tseethelightofday.ItappearstohavelanguishedintheReveshouseuntilEmery's
wifeWendygaveittotheU.S.NationalChurchillMuseumduringthe1980s.
Lastyear,themuseumsnewdirector,TimothyRiley,unearthedtheessayinthemuseum'sarchives.WhenastrophysicistMario
Liviohappenedtovisitthemuseum,Riley"thrust[the]typewrittenessay"intohishands,LiviowritesinNature.Rileywaseager
toheartheperspectiveofanastrophysicist.AndLivio,forhispart,wasfloored.ImaginemythrillthatImaybethefirst
scientisttoexaminethisessay,hewritesinNature.
Churchilldidhishomework,Livioreports.Thoughheprobablydidn'tporeoverpeerreviewedscientificliterature,thestatesman
seemstohavereadenough,andspokewithenoughtopscientistsincludingthephysicistFrederickLindemann,hisfriendand
laterhisofficialscientificadvisertohavehadastronggraspofthemajortheoriesandideasofhistime.Butthatwasn'twhat
leftthedeepestimpressiononLivio.
Tomethemostimpressivepartoftheessayotherthanthefactthathewasinterestedinitatall,whichisprettyremarkable
isreallythewaythathethinks,Liviosays.Heapproachedtheproblemjustasascientisttodaywould.Toanswerhisquestion
'Arewealoneintheuniverse?'hestartedbydefininglife.Thenhesaid,'OK,whatdoesliferequire?Whatarethenecessary
conditionsforlifetoexist?'
Churchillidentifiedliquidwater,forexample,asaprimaryrequirement.Whileheacknowledgedthepossibilitythatformsoflife
couldexistdependentonsomeotherliquid,heconcludedthatnothinginourpresentknowledgeentitlesustomakesuchan
assumption.
"Thisisexactlywhatwestilldotoday:Trytofindlifebyfollowingthewater,Liviosays.Butnext,Churchillasked'What
doesittakeforliquidwatertobethere?'Andsoheidentifiedthisthingthattodaywecallthehabitablezone.
Bybreakingdownthechallengeintoitscomponentparts,Churchillendedupdelvingintothefactorsnecessarytocreatewhatis
nowknownastheGoldilockszonearoundastar:thatelusiveregioninwhichalifesustainingplanetcouldtheoreticallyexist.
Inourownsolarsystem,heconcluded,onlyMarsandVenuscouldpossiblyharborlifeoutsideofEarth.Theotherplanetsdon't
havetherighttemperatures,Churchillnoted,whiletheMoonandasteroidslacksufficientgravitytotrapgassesandsustain
atmospheres.
Turninghisgazebeyondourownsolarsystemraisedevenmorepossibilitiesforlife,atleastinChurchill'smind.Thesunis
merelyonestarinourgalaxy,whichcontainsseveralthousandmillionsofothers,hewrote.Planetaryformationwouldberather
rarearoundthosestars,headmitted,drawingonathenpopulartheoryofnotedphysicistandastronomerJamesJeans.Butwhat
ifthattheoryturnedouttobeincorrect?(Infact,ithasnowbeendisproven.)
That'swhatIfindreallyfascinating,Livionotes.Thehealthyskepticismthathedisplayedisremarkable.
Churchillsuggestedthatdifferentplanetaryformationtheoriesmaymeanthatmanysuchplanetsmayexistwhichwillbethe
rightsizetokeepontheirsurfacewaterandpossiblyanatmosphereofsomesort.Ofthatgroup,somemayalsobeatthe
properdistancefromtheirparentsuntomaintainasuitabletemperature.
Thestatesmanevenexpectedthatsomeday,possiblyeveninthenotverydistantfuture,visitorsmightseeforthemselves
whetherthereislifeonthemoon,orevenMars.
ButwhatwasWinstonChurchilldoingpenningalengthyessayontheprobabilityofalienlifeinthefirstplace?Afterall,itwas
theeveofawarthatwoulddecidethefateofthefreeworld,andChurchillwasabouttobecomePrimeMinisteroftheUnited
Kingdom.
SuchanundertakingwasactuallyquitetypicalforChurchill,notesAndrewNahum,KeeperEmeritusattheScienceMuseum,
London,becauseitreflectsbothhisscientificcuriosityandhisrecurringneedtowriteformoney.Itwasskillwiththepenthat
oftensupportedChurchillandhisfamily'slavishlifestyle(recallthathewonthe1953NobelPrizeforLiterature,withamonetary
awardof175,293SwedishKronerworthabout$275,000today).
OnerecentbiographyisentitledNoMoreChampagne:ChurchillAndHisMoney,Nahumsays.Thatwasaphraseheputinto
anotetohiswifeaboutausteritymeasures.Buthedidn'tknowmuchaboutausterity.Helikedluxurysohewrotelikecrazy,both
booksandarticlesthathisagentcirculatedwidely.
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2/17/2017 Are We Alone in the Universe? Winston Churchill's Lost Extraterrestrial Essay Says No | Science | Smithsonian
ThatsnottosaythatChurchillwassimplyslingingcopyaboutaliensforapaycheck.Hewasprofoundlyinterestedinthe
sciencesandhereadverywidely,notesNahum,whocuratedthe2015ScienceMuseumexhibitionChurchill's
Scientists.NahumrelatesthetaleofhowChancelloroftheExchequerChurchillwasoncesentabookonquantumphysics,and
lateradmittedthatithadoccupiedhimforthebetterpartofadaythatshouldhavebeenspentbalancingtheBritishbudget.
Henotonlyreadscientificcontentvoraciously,butwroteonthetopicaswell.Ina1924issueofNash'sPallMallMagazine,
Churchillanticipatedthepowerofatomicweapons.Mightnotabombnobiggerthananorangebefoundtopossesssecret
powertodestroyawholeblockofbuildingsnay,toblastatownshipatastroke?hewarned.In1932,heanticipatedtheriseof
testtubemeatinthemagazinePopularMechanics:Fiftyyearshence,weshallescapetheabsurdityofgrowingawholechicken
inordertoeatthebreastorthewing,bygrowingthesepartsseparatelyinasuitablemedium,hewrote.
In1939heauthoredthreeessays,tacklingnotjustextraterrestriallifebuttheevolutionoflifeonEarthandthepopularbiologyof
thehumanbody.Twowerepublishedduring1942bytheSundayDispatch,NahumdiscoveredwhenreadingChurchill'spapers
attheUniversityofCambridge.Itremainsamysterywhyhisthoughtsonalienlifewentunpublished.
Intherediscoveredessay,Churchilladmitsthat,becauseofthegreatdistancesbetweenusandotherplanetharboringstars,we
mayneverknowifhishunchthatlifeisscatteredamongthevastnessofthecosmosiscorrect.Yetevenwithoutproof,Churchill
seemstohaveconvincedhimselfthatsuchapossibilitywaslikelyperhapsbyswappinghisscientificmindforonemorefinely
attunedtothehumanconditionduringthetroubled20thcentury.
I,forone,amnotsoimmenselyimpressedbythesuccesswearemakingofourcivilizationherethatIampreparedtothinkwe
aretheonlyspotinthisimmenseuniversewhichcontainsliving,thinkingcreatures,hewrote,orthatwearethehighesttypeof
mentalandphysicaldevelopmentwhichhaseverappearedinthevastcompassofspaceandtime.
SeventyfiveyearsafterChurchill'sboldspeculations,there'sstillnoproofthatlifeexistsonotherworlds.But,aswasoftenthe
case,hisanalysisofourownstillseemsprescient.
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AboutBrianHandwerk
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